I think what a razor feels like is also determined a lot by the angle, especially if there's a range of available angles with a given head. In my experience, there is likely to be little difference in the shave feel when using a shallow angle. When using a steep angle or somewhere in between, however, there can be substantial differences, because it seems to me that an open comb mostly really combs and directs hair whereas a safety bar can literally bend hair to serve it to the blade. Sometimes it just ruffles them, though. Lather and hair thickness comes into play here as well. Flow through is a bit different, too. I think this is why for me, an OC is more versatile, as the combing copes a bit better with longer hair. On the other hand, a safety bar feels safer and nicer on my moles and other sensitive areas.
It's kind of fun to watch these effects when playing with razors and technique on my shoulders. :-D
Having said that, the Virginia Shaving closed comb has enough of a blade gap to make clogging it pretty difficult. Kind of like an EJ/Merkur head after growth hormone treatment in a bootcamp. It's one of the reasons why the iKon 104 doesn't tempt me much.
I have a few OC heads that beat it in efficiency, but they are rather beastly.